Quick Synopsis: Renowned video game creator dies and sets up an online scavenger hunt to win his fortune. Wade is on the right track but what length will others go to stop him?

Honestly though, let’s take this moment to show appreciation for that awesome synopsis. Kind of proud of myself for that one. Go me!

There’s this blurb on the back of the book that calls Ready Player One, an “adult Willy Wonka” and wow, it totally really is. This book was literally like being sucked into a book and spit out into a video game. Cline did such a crazy excellent job at fully emerging his readers into this fantastic new world.

Needless to say, Cline’s world building is so absolutely top notch. Like top of the line. I couldn’t even handle it at some points.

I was born in the 90’s so my 80’s knowledge is not up to par at all, but somehow I felt like I knew what references were being made and it significantly added to the humor of the book. Don’t even get me started on the action sequences. No, just kidding, let’s start on them. They were so well-written that it was hard to remember 1. that I was reading a book and 2. that the characters weren’t even truly living in that world either. It’s all inside a video game, inside a book.

But getting out of the video game world for a second to focus on their “Real world” that Cline built. Holy guacamole. Their real world was so highly relatable it was actually quite frightening. Overpopulation, natural resources being depleted, and people being so consumed with electronics and their online presence that the world around them is literally falling apart. Oh man. It was tough to think about and could be easily glossed over but Cline did an excellent job at adding in this little commentary on the state of where our society is going.

Quick Synopsis: A companion robot boy has a string of adventures while trying to live in a world where androids have been outlawed.

I’ve been a fan of Dustin Nguyen’s art for quite some time. So when I saw this book in the New Arrivals section at the local Barnes & Noble, I was drawn in. The $9.99 price Image Comics sets for the first TPBs in a series was the second draw in and then I looked at the author. Jeff Lemire of Sweet Tooth fame. Legitimately a trifecta of amazing in the comic book nerd world.

The art is obviously amazing. Nguyen has a way of not only being entirely realistic but also so absolutely adorable. He inks and watercolors which adds a distinct sense of beauty and whimsy to each panel. The colors are vibrant yet different from traditional comic book art. Books with art by Nguyen are such a breath of fresh air in a genre that can sometimes be a little stagnant.

The writing is top notch as well. I’ve stated before that science-fiction is hard for me to get very into sometimes because sciencey stuff kind of gets jumbled in my mind and I never truly understand what is going on. However, while this story is very science-fiction driven, it is not hard to follow in the least. As the sci-fi aspect to the story is quite prominent, so are many other aspects including themes of human interaction, and social/cultural nuances.

I absolutely loved this book and was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved it. It is very reminiscent of the film Artificial Intelligence, which is one of my favorites to be honest.

Definitely would recommend to any fan of science-fiction, beautiful art, and wonderful storytelling.

Winter of 2014 was a good time for buying and receiving books. Winter has two gift giving holidays in my household, Christmas and my birthday. So, of course, I got books for both occasions.

Yay! ❤

But first, don’t remind me how grainy this picture is. It looked so much better on my phone. Ugh. ANYWAY!

The list includes:

Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
-This is the sequel to the beloved, soon to be major motion picture, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. Did I mention my copy is autographed? ❤ This lovely gem was gifted to me by my loving boyfriend.

Yes Please by Amy Poehler
-This is Poehler’s memoir and first book. Also signed ❤ and also gifted by the novio.

Sanctum by Madeline Roux
-Sequel to the hidden gem Asylum. I read Asylum when it came out, which was before this blog so I’m not entirely sure if I reviewed it, but holy moly, I’ll review both because I loved Asylum. Gifted to myself 😉

My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins
-Which is 12 different love stories set around the holidays and if you keep up with my blog, you know I loved it.

Schizo by Nic Sheff
-The main character goes through a schizophrenic episode the same weekend his brother goes missing. Does this not sound amazingly interesting? I wanted it for so long and, again, my lovely boyfriend gave it to me for Christmas!

Beautiful You by Chuck Palahniuk
-This was a spur the moment buy. It was signed and I decided to read the synopsis, after that, I had to get it. It’s like a crazy take over the world story. You want to know how they want to take over the world? Sex Toys. There, now you know why I wanted it. Also, I’ve never read Palahniuk, so why not start now?

Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris
-This is his memoir and it’s a choose your own path book. What’s not to want? Also, I received this from Random House and Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review. So, yes. I’m excited for this one.

Seventh Son by Joseph Delaney
-This is a bind up of the first two books from The Last Apprentice series. It’s a movie tie in cover but I could deal. It was cheap and it was two books in one. I’ll try to read it before I watch the movie. I’ve heard good things about this series. Gifted it to myself, obvs.

Harley Quinn Preludes and Knock-Knock Jokes by Karl Kesel
-I honestly don’t know much about this comic book except that it revolves around Harley Quinn and she’s my spirit animal. Gifted to me by my lovely brother and his girlfriend for Christmas.

The Selection by Kiera Cass
-I’ve heard so many amazing things about this series. I’ve heard it described as The Bachelor meets The Hunger Games and hey, yes, this got me crazy curious. So, I’ll hopefully catch up with the series before The Elite comes out. Gifted to myself. (I know, I’m terrible)

Artfolds
-This is a book that is more of an activity. It’s filled with Walt Disney quotes and then you fold the pages a certain way, so when you have it opened, it is in the shape of Mickey Mouse. It was cute and on sale and I need more cute decorations in my room, so sue me.

These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman
-The cover is gorgeous and I’m excited to read it. I’ve heard nothing by good things about it. I’m usually really iffy about sci-fi but I just couldn’t pass this one up.

and last but not least,

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
-As some of you may know/remember, I read Fangirl a while back and just couldn’t. I literally couldn’t. However, I read Landline and absolutely adored it. Rowell’s story in My True Love Gave to Me was the absolute best one. I realized that I love her. (and I’m willing to give Fangirl a second chance). So, my amazing boyfriend got me the collector’s edition of Eleanor and Park, and it is signed, by the amazing Rainbow Rowell. EEEEEEP! ❤ ❤ So excited to read this.

That concludes my epic Winter 2014 Book Haul.

I’ve only read two from the list so far but I must say, this is my most exciting haul I’ve ever had! Good luck everyone and HAPPY READING!

Finals are officially a thing of the past and I have made it through my first semester at a Cal State University without completely losing my mind!

So to celebrate, I’m going to try to marathon through three books for the remainder of December.

My first choice is My True Love Gave to Me by twelve different and amazingly celebrated YA authors.

Second, The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion. This is the sequel to The Rosie Effect, which I read earlier this year and absolutely adored. So, receiving an ARC was a pleasantly wonderful surprise. However, it’s release date is set for Dec. 30th, and I’d like to have a review for you all by that date. So, I’ll have to speed through it, seeing as it is the longest of the three.

Last but certainly not least, is These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. The cover of this book had always caught my eye but I never picked it up! Upon it’s paperback release, I thought, “why not?”. Kaufman is also having a signing for the sequel in January at the Grove, which, if I like this book, I will attend.

There are the three books and the reasons as to why I chose them as my last three books to finish in 2014.